The Pink Tarha Mornings in Jeddah, KSA

Over the weekend, this happened… 

Register here please, for a kit and a tea.

We're ready!

A different Piatto branch, a different set-up

How awesome is this option to have gelato for breakfast?! Haha!

Good morning!

It's on the little details.

The bag that contains the kit, the souvenir and the magazines.

The dining table 

The Pink Tarha, together with our sponsors, brought The Pink Tarha Mornings to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. You might be wondering why a Riyadh-focused blog would bring an event in another city that has little to do with it. Precisely our point. Jeddah needs a Pink Tarha-like blog. Or more blogs! And you know us, we love sharing! ;)

Again, why bring The Pink Tarha Mornings to Jeddah? WHY NOT? We were given a chance to do it… who are we to decline such an opportunity to meet good people in the Red Sea city? And met them we did! THANK YOU VERY MUCH to all who attended TPTM-Jeddah! We are so humbled by your presence. Some of you don't even know The Pink Tarha but you made time for us (a Friday morning at that!) to grace our event. We hope to meet you again soon. 

Have coffee! :)

What is it with us not wanting to sit in front?! Haha.

Eyecandy discussing blog writing and mobile photography

Kuya Larry discussing his idea for his future blog. ;)

Our Jeddah participants are active and so game! Thanks, y'all! :)

Thanks for coming!!! :D

It was a very interesting workshop because most of our participants were men! So cool. We didn't expect that but we're glad they weren't put off by the "girly-ness" of the event - from our kits to our souvenir bags. Haha.

The idea for this out-of-town workshop is not just a simple whim that we had. We thought it through and bless Piatto Restaurant, the official venue of The Pink Tarha Mornings - Riyadh, because they have a branch in Jeddah! (Does that mean we're looking at you now, Al Khobar?! Haha!) 

Always welcoming The Pink Tarha.

Refreshing resto; with good interiors and nice ambiance

The management and staff of Piatto has always been supportive of our endeavors and we couldn't have been more honored to have them in our event. THANK YOU VERY MUCH, PIATTO! The manager, Mr. Adil Bubere, and the staff of Piatto Restaurant in Jeddah were all nice and very efficient. Thank you, guys! And my goodness, the food are all delicious! (Try their very much improved pizza and their wild chicken mushroom risotto! You won't regret it!) 

This workshop's kit

The souvenirs from Camel Corner

We were also blessed to have Camel Corner, the home of KSA souvenirs and gifts, in this leg of The Pink Tarha Mornings series. They gave us souvenirs - keychains, magnets, figurines, and coasters - to give away to our participants. Camel Corner is one store that doesn't stop amazing us; it continuously comes up with products and stuff that bears witness to our lives in the Kingdom. I would love to have a pink stuffed camel! *wink* Haha. THANK YOU, CAMEL CORNER! 

Mr. Kenji Solis of PEBA Inc.

As we said in the website of The Pink Tarha Mornings - Jeddah, this event is also being done to raise donations for the distressed OFWs in the Tent City in Jeddah. (Read about the Tent City here. An article coming up asap.) We asked assistance and help from the good people of the Pinoy Expats/OFWs Blog Awards (PEBA Inc.) led by their hardworking founder, Mr. Kenji Solis. PEBA, if you remember, was the first award-giving body that gave us a trophy for being the second best OFW/expat blog in the world (at least in their side of the cyber-world). We believe in PEBA's cause and we know they have always the OFWs' best interest in their hearts. THANK YOU, PEBA INC.! Also, thanks for Sir Kenji for discussing Adsense... we learned a lot!

We would like to thank JOLLIBEE KSA (esp. to Mr. Billy Junn Tabares, marketing manager) for sponsoring the groceries which we gave to the people in the shelter inside the Philippine consulate in Jeddah. And to generous individuals who supported this cause: Mr. JULIUS ALFONSO and Ms. JOHARAH PABALATE for sponsoring the stuff we gave to the Tent City. Jou, our good friend and official photog of The Pink Tarha (naks, may ganon?! Hehe!), who is also the editorial manager of Destination Riyadh, was responsible for the copies of Destination Jeddah and Destination Riyadh. Thank you, Rumman Company, publisher of both magazines, for the free copies we gave to our participants. 

More details on the Tent City on an article we will publish in the blog soon.

Our friend Jou behind the lens.

To our friend, MS. JAMILA MAE FERNANDEZ, who didn't need to come but she did anyway for the sake of simply being our friend (such an awesome friend!)… THANK YOU VERY MUCH, ganda! Your presence made this event more meaningful to us. We would have been bored without your sunshine. Haha! To Sampaguita Pride who can't be with us because she's currently pursuing a career in the Philippines, we miss you, girl! We wish you could have been with us on this day.

To our families and friends who believe in us and encourage us to achieve greater heights in our personal and social lives… THANK YOU! WE LOVE YOU! 

Despite the fact that Nas Air cancelled our flight back to Riyadh (needless to say, we are never flying via Nas Air again… or okay, maybe not any time soon), that we met a few rude people in our stroll in Jeddah (long story!), and that we had to endure a 12-hour bus ride (which was better than we expected, really)… we are grateful beyond belief for all these blessings. We found greater happiness in making this event possible and successful and having the support of the best people in the world. We are surrounded by pure awesomeness! TYL. ~ Sundrenched

You can check out a few photos of the event in our Instagram: thepinktarha.

Through Your Eyes, The Second Morning

The second Pink Tarha Mornings went by quickly and smoothly. We have a bigger crowd this time, just a little bit more from the first one and we have a guest speaker who knows a lot about our chosen topic... PHOTOGRAPHY. Do you know how many photography clubs are in Riyadh? A lot and yes, we will come up with a feature on them one of these days but for now, we had a workshop led by professional photographer Nikoll Long-Carr. You should really visit her site and learn more about this remarkable woman. 

The second workshop titled "Through Your Eyes" is a full basic photography workshop that was held in Piatto Restaurant in Exit 5 here in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The 'Mornings' are making quite a stir now especially after the feature in Balitang Middle East. You still have to pinch me sometimes for me to believe I just watched The Pink Tarha ladies on tv. Anyway, here is a photo diary of the second Pink Tarha Mornings. Whenever we have this event, everything just moves forward rapidly that it's already over before I can grapple with reality.

Piatto Italian Restaurant

Piatto Restaurant in Exit 5, once again, opened their second floor 'courtyard' for the second Pink Tarha Mornings. We love how they setup the place for a bigger crowd this time. The sponsors of our pastries and baked goods were given a long table. The Piatto management has always been supportive of our endeavor and again, we'd like to express our gratitude to its management, esp. to Sir Steve, Sir Majed, Sir Albert, and Sir Neil, for giving us this opportunity. This venue is, as always, perfect!

A different set of colors

I deviated from the usual pink this time around and used bright colors of lime and orange. If you see our site for Through Your Eyes, I used a different set of digital papers for decorations and sign ages. Even the badges you see above use summery colors. I think it suits a morning event as well. We'll always love pink though. ;)

We usually arrive around 8 o'clock in the morning to prepare the venue and our stuff. Early risers much? Haha! The Pink Tarha ladies didn't have a dress code but Eyecandy, Shoegarfreeruby and I came in shades of peach. Sampaguita Pride had a summer dress with bright yellow details. It wasn't a requirement for the ladies to arrive in pink but some of them did. Yeyyy! ;)

Shoegarfreeruby, fresh from her vacation, is manning the registration area.

Sampaguita Pride having her cuppajoe.

Our sponsors arrived looking fabulous with their equally fabulous baked goodies. Cielo Algaeed arrived with her husband, Mr. Abdul, and went on arranging her Paris-inspired dessert buffet table. We love seeing her work progress over the months.

Cielo Algaeed of Cielo's Sweet Treats

The bubbly and very energetic Cecile Bautista-Perez arrived next with her family in tow. They arranged her lovely setup of cupcakes, nibble bars, cake pops, and chocolates. And yes, we fell easily in love with her baked creations.

Cecile Perez of Dolce Cecilia

There was an abundance of sweet treats and glorious pastries!

Cake pops!

Seems like cake pops are all the rave these days. You should try these yummy balls of sweetness! We also had guests who brought their own baked goodies to be shared. Aren't we lucky to have lovely and generous participants? ;)

Thanks, Meg Tillah, for the cute and colorful cupcakes + cookies!

Thanks, Nadia Tariq!

The ladies getting some coffee + pastries before the start of the program.

The ladies started trickling in to the venue around 9 o'clock. They were welcomed by R who was in-charge of the registration. This time, our folder kits are yellow! Woot! So bright! Haha! The guests are free to roam around the place, have coffee and pastries, and get to know the other ladies.

Let us begin the session!

Eyecandy as our host for today's workshop.

Nikoll Long-Carr on how to hold the camera properly.

Always ready with a smile

The participants listening intently.

A few raffle prizes in between

One of the new things we incorporated in this second event is having a raffle draw. The prizes include Saudi Arabia bags from Camel Corner, ID lanyard (so limited it was only one, haha!), MNG clothes, and a gift voucher for Four Nail Spa and Salon. Nikoll added one of her framed photos too featuring the Kingdom Tower.

Nikoll on photo tips and tricks

Nikoll with her framed photos

After the lecture session, the exercise session began. Nikoll roamed around to help out the participants and answer any of their questions. Brunch was also served during this time so they can capture the food, if the ladies want to. There's a photo contest happening after the event. You can check out the photos here.

Nikoll giving Nadia a few pointers

One-on-one session

The ladies enjoying their brunch

E and P with the ladies who are also interested in Toastmasters

One thing we learned from the first Pink Tarha Mornings is to allot enough time to distribute certificates and take a photo of each participant in the process. So we did just that! We get to keep the photos, of course, as our souvenir for another successful event.

Awarding of certificates

Thank you, Nikoll!

Shoegarfreeruby, Eyecandy, Sampaguita Pride, and Sundrenched

The Pink Tarha ladies are very much in debt to all the people who made this event possible! As you've probably read in our Facebook page, we had a lot to be thankful for... including you dear readers! ;)

Thankful to our friends who helped and supported this event.

Thankful to our sponsors, Whites Pharmacy and Volvo.

Thankful to our lovely participants!!!

Again, we'd like to THANK everyone who's supported and helped and cheered us on in this endeavor. This wouldn't be successful without you.

Want coffee? Own the mug too! ;) One of our souvenirs for this event.

Whites Pharmacy has provided ample samples for this event. They came in a cute box too! ;)

A few might be asking why we're holding the Pink Tarha Mornings. What do we get from it? What do we gain from it? Friends. That's what. And with that simple reason alone, we hope to be able to hold more Pink Tarha Mornings in the future. Stay tuned! ;)

The aftermath... Thanks Jou for being our photographer for the day! WOOT!

After all the guests have gone and the our friends have also left for the morning, Eyecandy and I usually have an egress report of some sort.We deal with the packing up and reviewing the event while having our proper lunch (we cannot eat properly during the event... must be the nerves, haha!). It's like having an immediate SWOT analysis of the event. Nothing formal just a quick recap so we can make the future events better. 

So, who's excited for the next Pink Tarha Mornings? We're thinking of bringing The Pink Tarha Mornings to Alkhobar and Jeddah! What do you think? Hahaha! Ambitious much? ;) ~ Sundrenched